Bug 175763

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Description of problem:
The file Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt contains the following incorrect description of the overcommit_memory sysctl:

---begin---
overcommit_memory
-----------------

This file  contains  one  value.  The following algorithm is used to decide if
there's enough  memory:  if  the  value of overcommit_memory is positive, then
there's always  enough  memory. This is a useful feature, since programs often
malloc() huge  amounts  of  memory 'just in case', while they only use a small
part of  it.  Leaving  this value at 0 will lead to the failure of such a huge
malloc(), when in fact the system has enough memory for the program to run.

On the  other  hand,  enabling this feature can cause you to run out of memory
and thrash the system to death, so large and/or important servers will want to
set this value to 0.
---end---

This suggests that 0 is used to disable the feature, when in fact this enables heuristic overcommit mode. The statement that positive values enable overcommit is also untrue. 

The documentation was fixed upstream in 2.6.14.

This feature is documented correctly in at least two other files (vm/overcommit-accounting and sysctl/vm.txt) but the current state obviously confuses people and has crept into other documentation. This is compounded by a lack of references from proc.txt to these other files. 


Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable):
kernel-doc-2.6.9-22

How reproducible:
Always

Steps to Reproduce:
Read the file Documentation/filesystems/proc.txt packaged in the RHEL4 kernel-doc package or SRPM.

Actual Results:  Documentation is incorrect.

Expected Results:  Documentation should be consistent with other files and the kernel's actual behaviour. 

Additional info: